After I pour the cement, should I water it from time to time so that it won't dry out quickly?

concretemasonry

04-22-2007 03:22 PM

You should keep it moist for a few days.

handbanana

04-22-2007 04:09 PM

I purchased a few bags of quickrete concrete mix, mixed them according to the right directions and poured a step. The weather was in the low 70s. After I removed the wood encasing around the step, I noticed that the edges on the step were brittle and easy to chip off. Is this normal?

concretemasonry

04-22-2007 04:18 PM

Should I water the concrete after I pour it?

If you had square corners instead of a tooled edge with a small radius - yes.

If the concrete was still green and uncured -yes.

You should toll edges and leave the forms on as long as practical. What good does it do to remove the forms early if the concrete is not hard enough to be serviceable?

Just because the concrete has set, does not mean it is strong yet. Concrete takes time to cure.